Panel says no cover-up attempt by Japan nuke plant

TOKYO (AP) - An independent panel said the operator of Japan's tsunami-crippled nuclear plant misinformed investigators and blocked an inspection of key equipment last year, but that it was not part of a cover-up.

The case involves a parliamentary probe of equipment at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant's Unit 1 reactor. An investigator said he and his fellow team members had to scrap an inspection of the reactor's emergency cooling equipment, accusing plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co., or Tepco, of falsely stating that the building was dark and too dangerous.

The equipment - called an isolation condenser, which can function without electricity - is at the centre of a major controversy, with some experts suspecting that its failure might have been caused by the magnitude-9.0 earthquake on March 11, 2011, and not by the subsequent tsunami, as has been widely thought. The disasters destroyed power and cooling systems at the plant, causing multiple meltdowns, including at Unit 1.

The parliamentary investigators eventually released a report on Unit 1 that refers to possible earthquake damage to the equipment, and if proved would shake the current anti-quake measures at nuclear facilities nationwide, experts say.